July 13, 2022 Russia-Ukraine news

Two Russian missile strikes were conducted in the Zaporizhzhia region, according to the regional military administration.

Kyrylo Tymoshenko, deputy head of the office of the Ukrainian President, said Wednesday that one of the missile strikes in Zaporizhzhia injured seven.

The strikes come as Ukraine steps up its own use of long-range artillery and rocket systems.

"In the last two weeks, the situation has become much more tense as one of the Russian military bases was completely destroyed, a railway bridge was blown up, an armored train derailed," said Ivan Fedorov, the mayor of occupied Melitopol.

On Tuesday, another military base being used by the Russians was destroyed near the village of Myrne, a few kilometers from Melitopol, he added.

CNN is unable to confirm the attack on the base at Myrne.

Fedorov, who is not in Melitopol, said the Russians were "trying to block the departure of people from the occupied territories."

He said fewer cars left Melitopol yesterday and tens of thousands of people remain in the city.

"According to our estimates, up to 60,000 - 70,000 residents remain in Melitopol. This is about half of the population before the invasion," he said.

"There is nothing to discuss" on the subject of peace talks with Russia, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said Wednesday in an online briefing with reporters.

Ukraine's objective in this war is "to liberate our territories and restore our territorial integrity and full sovereignty in the east and in the south of Ukraine. This is the end point of our negotiating position," he added.

Kuleba also played down suggestions there might be "fatigue" abroad with the conflict.

He said the website created by the Ukrainian government had reached 600 million people around the world, including 91 million in June.

"Despite the narratives about war fatigue, our communications only improve and become stronger," he said.

The lawyer of 21-year-old Russian soldier Vadim Shishimarin — who was sentenced to life in prison in Ukraine's first war crime trial since Russia's invasion — said that his client “had no intention of killing a man.” 

Shishimarin was found guilty of killing a 62-year-old civilian during his deployment with the Russian army in the early days of the war. He was sentenced to life in prison on May 23.

Shishimarin’s legal team asked the judges at the Kyiv Court of Appeals to reverse the verdict, arguing that Shishimarin “did not shoot accurately” and urging the court to consider that he refused to shoot several times and surrendered voluntarily. 

“He had no intention of killing a man,” said his lawyer, Viktor Ovsyannikov.

Ovsyannikov also said that it is “necessary to distinguish the one who tragically accidentally killed a man from those who deliberately shell residential areas with artillery.”

The court has asked Shishimarin’s lawyer to supplement the appeal. The next hearing is scheduled for July 25. 

Talks between Ukraine, Russia, Turkey and the United Nations have kicked off in Istanbul, the Turkish Ministry of Defense said in a statement Wednesday.

Some more context: Ukraine hopes to speed up grain exports through reopened Danube River routes amid Russia's blockade of key Black Sea ports.

The line of barges currently waiting to sail up the Danube River and load up on grain at one of Ukraine’s river ports will take several weeks to clear, first deputy Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food Taras Vysotsky said in a televised address Wednesday.

“A queue of about 90 barges has formed in the area of the Danube River for several months and will continue for several more weeks,” Vysotsky said. “Thanks to the release of Snake Island, the additional throughput is four to five vessels per day.”

About 80% of Ukraine’s grain exports were shipped from the country’s Black Sea ports before Russia's invasion.

The line of barges currently waiting to sail up the Danube River and load up on grain at one of Ukraine’s river ports will take several weeks to clear, first deputy Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food Taras Vysotsky said in a televised address Wednesday.

“A queue of about 90 barges has formed in the area of the Danube River for several months and will continue for several more weeks,” Vysotsky said. “Thanks to the release of Snake Island, the additional throughput is four to five vessels per day.”

Before Russia’s invasion, about 80% of Ukraine’s grain exports were shipped from the country’s Black Sea ports.

Vysotsky said that harvesting had already begun in Ukrainian-controlled territories, with winter barley the first crop to be picked. 

“It is already being harvested even in the northern regions,” he said. “The yield [for winter barley] is a little lower than last year, but last year's harvest was a record.”

“In general, the yield this year is higher than the five-year average,” he added.

The hearing of 21-year-old Russian soldier Vadim Shishimarin at the Kyiv Court of Appeals has resumed after a brief pause following an air raid siren.

Shishimarin was earlier seen taken out of the courtroom by CNN teams on the ground.

Shishimarin is the first person to be convicted of a war crime since Russia’s invasion. He is expected to challenge the court decision handed to him in May. He was found guilty of killing a 62-year-old civilian during his deployment with the Russian army in the early days of the war.

He was sentenced to life in prison on May 23.

The Kremlin says an alleged purchase of Iranian drones by Russia will not be discussed when Russian President Vladimir Putin visits Iran next week.

On Tuesday, White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told journalists the US had information indicating that Iran is preparing to supply Russia with drones -- including weapons-capable drones -- and begin training Russian forces on how to operate them as early as this month.

When asked about the accusations during a conference call with journalists on Wednesday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the Russian presidency had “no comments on this matter.”

He later added the topic would not be discussed when Putin travels to Iran on Tuesday. 

The Kremlin also commented on US President Joe Biden's visit to the Middle East, with Peskov saying that he hopes Biden's "oil diplomacy" will not turn Saudi Arabia against Russia.

“We appreciate the work we are able to do with our partners [within the framework of the OPEC+ agreements], including with leading partners such as Saudi Arabia,” Peskov said. 

“We highly value our interests and our interaction with Riyadh. Of course, we hope that the development of Riyadh's relations with other world capitals will not be directed against us,” he added.

Biden will meet with the Saudi leadership during his trip to Saudi Arabia this week with an aim to strengthen partnership between the countries, and he will also hold bilateral meetings with a number of other Middle Eastern leaders before closing the trip with the GCC+3 Summit, according to Sullivan.

If you're just joining us, here's what you need to know about the latest developments in Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic opens embassy in Moscow: The flag of the Russia-backed separatist-held region was on display outside the embassy following the official opening in Moscow on July 12. The opening of the embassy took place without any senior Russian government figures in attendance. "We can't celebrate here when our countrymen are dying," DPR Ambassador Olga Makeyeva said.

The death toll in Chasiv Yar's building strike climbs to 47: The number has been steadily climbing since a Russian rocket struck a residential building in the eastern Ukrainian city of Chasiv Yar on Saturday. The rescue operation is still ongoing, according to authorities.

Hearing of convicted a Russian soldier is underway in Kyiv court: The 21-year-old Russian soldier Vadim Shishimarin is expected to challenge the court decision handed to him in May. He was found guilty of killing a 62-year-old civilian during his deployment with the Russian army in the early days of the war, and he was sentenced to life in prison on May 23.

Here's a look at the Russian-occupied areas in Ukraine:

A close ally of President Vladimir Putin, businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin, has asked Russia’s Investigative Committee to open a criminal case against two journalists of the independent Russian publication Meduza over its investigation into the involvement of Russian mercenaries in the war in Ukraine, Prigozhin-owned company Concord said in a statement on Wednesday. 

Prigozhin, a Russian oligarch known as Putin’s "chef," is thought to be the driving force behind the Wagner Group of Russian mercenaries and was one of the members of Putin's elite sanctioned by the US in March after the invasion of Ukraine.

In the statement, Prigozhin says he asked the Investigative Committee to open a case against Meduza’s editorial director Tatiana Yershova, as well as journalist Lilia Yapparova, for disseminating "fake news" about the Russian army and treason, based on the questions they sent to him about the participation of the Wagner Group in the war in Ukraine.

UK and US officials said in March that the private Wagner Group was active in eastern Ukraine.

“The questions asked by the authors contain their initial information that a certain private military company Wagner is directly involved in the special operation carried out by the Russian Federation on the territory of Ukraine,” Prigozhin said in an appeal to the Russian Investigative Committee.

“From them we can conclude that Lilia Yapparova, as well as employees of Meduza unknown to me, are preparing mass informational provocations against Russia, that is why I ask you to initiate criminal proceedings against the above persons,” he added.

Meduza published a deep dive into the inner workings of the Russian government on Wednesday, suggesting the relationship between Prigozhin and the Kremlin had allegedly soured shortly before the invasion of Ukraine. One of the questions submitted by Meduza to the businessman and released by his company Concord specifically addresses Prigozhin’s relationship with Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. 

Meduza also published an investigation into a special military unit allegedly formed in Moscow to recruit mercenaries from Russian regions to participate in Russia’s aggression in Ukraine. According to Meduza, this unit is at least partially financed from the budget of Moscow and is often referred to as the “Sobyanin’s Regiment” -- a reference to Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin.

When asked by CNN on a regular conference call Wednesday about that military unit, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov declined to comment, saying “We don’t know anything about it.”